Tuatha De Danann
by Glorfindel's Girl
Summary: A self proclaimed lost soul gets a second chance after attending an unusual concert, featuring the most extraordinary singer the world's ever heard. Rated for language


**Tuatha Dé Danann**

**By Glorfindel's Girl**

**Disclaimer:**I am making no money in any way, shape, or form from the publication of this story.  All characters are the sole property of their respective owners.  This story includes lyrics from the song "Nightfall in Araman" by Blind Guardian.  All others song lyrics are mine.  Permission to reproduce them may be obtained by emailing me at glorfindelsgirl@yahoo.com.

**Author's Note: **This is just an odd little story that I've been working on sporadically for the past eight months or so.  Then someone brought up the topic of "Maglor, the Pop Super Star" on the Silmfics discussion group, and I knew I just had to finish this story.  The writing style's a little odd – first person, present tense for the most part.  Short.  Choppy.  Not like my usual writing style at all.  But what can I say?  Genevieve just kind of took over the story.  Also, be aware that this story isn't completely polished up yet.  It's still quite rough in places.  I just figured I'd go ahead and post and see what everyone thinks so far.  And by the way, any comments on my songwriting skills *grin* would be appreciated.  Enjoy…

__________________

Another Friday night, another concert.  Another Saturday spent in hangover hell.  That was my plan at least.  Rock out, drink up, forget about life.  It's not a permanent fix, unfortunately, but God damn, it's good while it lasts.

           They say that life's a bitch, and then you die.  Jesus Christ, don't I know it.  Life's done nothing but knock me on my ass since I was six years old.  But enough about me already.  More about said concert.  

           There's this new band that's playing down in Deep Ellum tonight.  Tuatha Dé Danann.  From somewhere over in Europe.  I've never heard of them, but Seona Roberts swears they're good.  "The concert of a lifetime," I believe were her exact words.  It it's not, oh well.  Just an excuse to get drunk faster.  Not like I'm gonna remember the concert anyway.

There's four of us going.  Me, Seona, Jude, and the twins.  Amielé and Andrew.  Go on.  Ask me if I know any of them besides Seona.  Ask me if I care.

           The ride to Dallas is long and boring as hell.  Traffic is backed up as far as I can see.  Guess we're not the only ones trying to escape Hicksville USA for metropolitan bliss.  If I wasn't so damn afraid of drugs, I'd have popped some X an hour ago.  Maybe being afraid just isn't excuse enough for suffering through this damn car ride.  

I made sure I got to sit by the window in the backseat.  But Jude, the blonde guy sitting next to me keeps trying to engage me in some sort of fascinating conversation.  I keep trying to find the concrete barriers outside the window more fascinating.  You'd think he'd get the message, but he just keeps chatting away.  Maybe if I start banging my head against the window he'd get the message.  Not bloody well interested.

Eventually we made it to Deep Ellum.  No need to bore you with the details of the rest of the car ride.  When we pull into the parking lot, it's already full of cars.  For a band I've never heard of, they're sure pulling one hell of a crowd.  We end up having to park a couple blocks away, and walk.  Seona's walking a few steps ahead of me, and I'm wondering if I'm overdressed.  She's wearing a pair of loose jeans, so faded they're almost white, and a black tee shirt with the words "…Not all who wander are lost…" written in red script, visible through her swinging curtain of dark hair.  The other three are dressed similarly, and Andrew's shirt even matches Seona's.  Cute.  I'm wearing tight boot cut jeans and a tailored forest green shirt, with a nice slit up the front that shows off my stomach.  I still feel like the ugly duckling.

When we get to the door of the club, there's this big sign on the door that says "No Alcohol."  God damn it.  This night just keeps getting better and better.  The dude at the door checks our tickets and stamps our hands, and we're in.

As soon as we're inside, I feel like I'm severely underdressed.  No, not necessarily that.  Dressed wrong.  There's a few more people wearing those "…Not all who wander are lost…" shirts, but that's about it as far as jeans and tee shirts go.  Most of the people are wearing Renaissance-wannabe shirts and dresses.  Even the people that are wearing jeans and shirts have a kind of old world look to their outfits.  I really feel like the ugly duckling now.  I'm not ugly by a long shot, but I was definitely the least attractive person in the room.  We're talking some seriously beautiful people in here.

Jude and the twins kind of abandon me and Seona, wandering off to talk to a group of people in the corner.  Oh well.  Like I care.  

"Come on," Seona says, and she grabs my arm and starts leading me through the crowd of people towards the stage.  There's a tangible buzz in the room.  Like an electric current flowing through the crowd.  Excitement, anticipation.  We end up right up against the stage, and the lights go out.  No warning, no "Ladies and gentlemen, the band," no nothing.  The lights go out, and we're all left standing there in the dark scratching our asses and what not.  The anticipation in the room reaches a kind of high.  

And suddenly, with the room still dark, _he_ starts singing.  And oh God, his voice…it's like liquid fire coursing through my body.  It sends chills up my back.  The lights are coming up on the stage, illuminating him like some kind of phantom.  There's no band, no back up singers, only him, only the microphone, only the music.  

He's keeping his face down as he sings, long dark hair falling around his shoulders.   His voice….oh God, how can I begin to tell you what his voice is doing to me?   It beautiful…and sorrowful beyond anything I've ever heard.  It envelops me, the words entwining around my body.

The last note of the song hangs frozen in the air, and he looks up.  Looks at me.  And his eyes…his eyes are like thunder clouds, an oddly beautiful shade of grey.  But there's danger in his gaze.  A constant threat of lightning.

The applause fades in; a roaring sound.  The singer bows, and the of the stage lights are coming up now, revealing the rest of the band.  The next song starts before the applause has a chance to fade out.  Faster, more hard core, heavy alternative rock than the first song.  It surprises me when I recognize the song.  My friend Rosalyn used to sing it all the time.  Now as I the band plays it, the singer's tone becomes sorrowful and desperate.

"The words of a bitter king,

I swear revenge!

Filled with anger aflamed our hearts

Full of hate, full of pride

Oh we screamed for revenge!"

           I happen to glance over at Seona, and she's singing along, and crying.  Crying, for God's sake.  As the band reaches the chorus, almost everyone joins in.  By the final refrain, I'm singing too.

           "Oh nightfall

           Quietly it crept in and changed us all.

           Nightfall.

           Immortal land lies down in agony."

           I don't recognize the song he's singing now, and I didn't know the one before that either.  They've all kind of run together, even though some were slower, acoustic, and others were full blown alternative rock.  But his voice…his voice has made every song hauntingly beautiful.  I realize he's looking at me, staring at me as he's singing.  I've never heard this song before, but the words are already etched in my mind.

           "All the years and all the pain

           Has lead me now to this.

           Why won't you loose your hold on me

           And let me rest in peace?

           Swear to the impossible

           And you are bound to pay.

           The light it burns, I'm suffering.

           But I still can't look away.

           It shines on, though the light's a torment to me.

           Reminding me of all I've left behind

           A moment for a piece of all eternity.

           So shine on, and I will follow you.

           I will never stop wanting you."

           I break down during the middle of the song, and cry.  I don't care that I'm surrounded by a roomful of strange people.  All that matters is me and the music.  The lyrics, his voice, the meaning it has to me.  

           And now the house lights are coming back up, and the band's gathered on the edge of the stage for their final bow.  It doesn't seem like he's been singing long, but when I look down at my watch, it shows that they've been singing for nearly two hours.  God damn, time does fly.  The applause is deafening.

           The crowd's thinning out, and I start to make my way to the door when the security guard steps in front of me, blocking the way.  He nods loosely to both Seona and myself.

           "Ranen asked for you," he says.  I have no clue what he's talking about, plus I'm still in shock over the concert.  So, naturally, I turn to Seona.  The guard shakes his head.

           "Not her.  You.  Follow me."  Feeling uneasy, I still follow the uniformed guard, with Seona gliding along beside me.

           "Who is Ranen?" I ask, glancing at her.  She smiles, and there's something in the expression that I can't quite place.  Like she knows more than she's gonna tell.  I don't like it.

           "The singer," she replies nonchalantly.  I try to keep the surprise from showing on my face.  The feeling of unease grows stronger.  I don't like where this is going.  At all.  

           "I can't do this, Seona.  I just can't," I say, finally.  Seona just keeps on smiling, although she manages a short sigh.

           "Don't worry, Genevieve," Seona says as we stop at the stage door.  "You'll be _fine_.  We'll wait for you."

           And suddenly the guard's leading me down the dark hallway behind the stage, and I'm feeling sick to my stomach.  I can't do this.  We pause in front of a closed door, and the guard reaches around me to open it, ushering me inside.  I hear the door close with a soft click.  

           The room's lit by the flickering glow of dozens of candles scattered about the room.  There's these embroidered cushions scattered in once corner, and I can hear music playing from somewhere.  Not quite what I expected.

           Someone rises from a chair in the corner, and moves towards me.  Shit.  I hadn't even seen him sitting there.  It's the singer.  Ranen.

           The light spills onto his face when he stops in front of me.  God but he is beautiful.  And yet at the same time, he seems sorrowful beyond reason, like the sadness has penetrated every part of his being until it positively radiates from him.  He smiles and holds out his hand to me.

           "Hi.  I'm Ranen," he says softly.  He's got this accent that I can't quite place, one that you couldn't hear in any of his songs.  

           "Jen," I reply, shaking his hand.  He frowns slightly.

           "No.  That's not your name."  

           Okay, what the hell is up with this guy?  And what the hell is that supposed to mean.  "Genevieve," I say finally.  "My name is Genevieve.  And I'm gonna bet that you name's not really Ranen.  Doesn't suit you at all."

           He laughs at that, and gestures to the pile of cushions in the corner.  "Please, sit down."

           Right.  There is no way in hell I'm getting cozy with this guy on a big pile of pillows.  No way.  "I'll just take the chair, thanks."

           He nods, and steps aside so I can sit in the chair.  I sit down, and he tosses several cushions towards the chair, arranging them in a pile, and sitting down on them.  

           "Would you care for something to drink?" he asks, standing up again.  He walks over to the dressing table, and picks up a bottle.  He doesn't even wait for me to reply, before pouring the contents into two wine glasses.  He hands one to me, and keeps the other for himself as he sits back down at my feet.  So much for not getting cozy.  

           I take a tentative sip of the liquid.  It's cool, sweet, and heavy, with just the slightest hint of alcohol.  When I hold the glass up to the candle-light the liquid glows this cool golden color.  

           "Did you like the concert?" Ranen asks softly, pausing to take a sip from his glass.

           "Oh my God, it was incredible!" I say, before I can catch myself.  I've let my guard down, but I can't help but blunder on.  "I mean…your voice is one of the most beautiful things I've ever heard in my life."  

           He laughs, brushing back his dark hair.  As he does so, I can see that he's got a bandage wrapped all around the palm of his hand.  

           "What did you do to yourself?" I ask.  He smiles again, but it is a sorrowful expression this time.  

           "I burned myself.  A long time ago.  Chasing after foolish desires," he replies.

           "I've had more than my share of those," I say.  I leave out the fact that in the past, I've been the desire that others have chased after.  Don't think about it, Genevieve.  Just don't think about it.  He just stares at me for a long while, twirling his glass between his fingers.  

           "For someone as young as you, it seems as though the world has already beaten you down."  He lays his hand on my leg as he says this.  Now, there was a time when I would have frozen, let him do whatever.  But not now.  Not after the shit that I've had to live through.  

"Please don't touch me like that," I say.  Immediately, his hand drops away.  Bonus points for him.  

"You don't trust me," Ranen replies.  The way he says it is more of a statement than a question.  

"I don't trust anyone anymore," I reply, my throat starting to tighten up.  "Because I've been betrayed one too many times, by people like you.  Guys who play the "it's okay, I understand, I'm not like that," card before screwing you over, and leaving you broken and alone.  I've been hurt one too many times, and I can't do it any more."

Almost before I realize it, I've stood up, and started towards the door.  Ranen stands in one quick motion, but for some reason does not move towards me.

           "Genevieve," he says softly, and it's enough.  I stop, and turn around to face him again.  His eyes…his eyes are so sad, so beautiful.  Slowly, he walks towards me, and suddenly, I'm cradled in his arms, crying like a baby.  

"What in the hell do you want with me?  Huh?  What are you playing at?" I ask.  "I can handle seduction, or hell even rape again, but not these damn pretenses."

           "Shhh," he whispers, smoothing my hair under his hands.  "Not everyone's motives are so dark."  And he just holds me, lets me sob onto his shoulder.  I realize after a moment that he's singing, softly.  Gradually, I stop crying, manage to get control of myself somehow.  Push everything back down.

           Ranen pushed me away from him gently, holding me at arm's length, so he could look me in the eye.

           "You cannot run from your past, Genevieve.  Not forever.  Because sooner or later, it is going to catch up with you.  And you can let that happen.  You can run until it catches you.  Or you can turn around and face your past.  But whichever you do, you have to have faith…you have to have _hope_ that you will see it through.  You can't stay in the dark forever."

           I just stand there, staring up at him, trying to absorb everything he's just said.  And I swear to God as I'm standing there looking up at him, he's glowing.  Not like some nuclear radiation freak, but a glow like moonlight on water.  His dark hair is startling against his pale skin.  And staring up into his beautiful face, a strange thought hits me.

           _This is not a human being_.

           As strange as it seems, I know it's true.  How I could have ever thought he was human is beyond me.  I'm crying, tears slowly flowing down my cheeks.  I say the first thing that comes into my mind.

           "What are you?"

           Ranen just smiles, that strange sad smile of his.  "I am just a singer of songs Genevieve.  I am just a singer."

           He leans down then and kisses me on the forehead.  Just a quick brush of lips, that leaves my skin tingling from head to toe.  

           "Hope," he whispers once more.  "Have hope, Genevieve.  It is all we have."

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I don't remember exactly how I got back home that night.  I vaguely remember riding back in the car with Seona, smushed in the back seat between Jude and Andrew.  It's all kind of weird looking back on it, like it was some other person that the whole thing happened to.  And you want to know the weirdest thing?  Since then, life has been better.  Nothing earth shattering, but little things.  Slowly, I'm beginning to trust in people again.  

           I searched the Internet for weeks after the concert, trying to find out anything I could on the band.  About Tuatha Dé Danann.  About Ranen.  But I never found anything.  The closest thing I ever found was an entry on a Celtic mythology page about a race of legendary creatures called the Sidhé.  Immortals renowned for their beauty, music, and poetry.  The last remnants of a great people called the Tuatha Dé Danann.  And I found a name.  Ranen.  It's Hebrew, you know.  It means "singer."

           I don't know exactly what happened that night at the concert.  But I do know this.  I was given a second chance.  Everyone deserves one.  Not everyone gets one.  I wonder how many others there are out there, lost souls like me.  I don't know, but I do have something I would like to pass on to all of them.

           Legend says that when Pandora opened her box, she filled the world with malice, and hurt.  But she saw through the darkness, and in the bottom of the box she found Hope.

           Hope.  Have hope.  Because sometimes, it is all we have left.


End file.
